The Blood of Olympus
by Holly Chase
Summary: Annabeth and Percy have safely returned from Tartarus and now the seven must travel to Athens in Greece before the Feast of Spes. With the end of the prophecy and its meaning looming over them, not everyone is going to get their happy ending. :: House of Hades spoilers
1. Jason I

**Hey people! Okay, so this is my version of The Blood of Olympus which is the title of the next Heros of Olympus book. I'm going to need REVIEWS and FEEDBACK and NO FLAMES! If you have ideas or thoughts or anything because at the moment I am the only person in my Percy Jackson Fan group wo has read this book and none of my friends want spoilers so I need someone to talk to! Tell me what you think!**

* * *

**The Blood of Olympus**

**I**

**JASON**

As he watched the Athena Parthenos vanish into a cloud of shadows, Jason had never felt so small.

He stared after the group long after everyone else left the boat side, Annabeth and Percy were rushed towards the inside of the boat and towards the storage room, where they would be spoon-fed ambrosia until their feet began to spark.

Hazel had stayed for a while, her chocolate hair kept smacking Jason's face in hard, elastic-like tendrils. Jason realised that Hazel hadn't had a shower in at least as long as he had, and was even worse off than he in the dirt-scale simply because she and Leo had been alone with the reincarnated labyrinth and Pasiphaë that psyco lady. From that perspective, both of them just being alive was a miracle.

Still, Jason didn't appreciate that Hazel's hair was slapping against his cheeks and making his face feel numb. _There must be so much grit_, thought Jason. He brushed his hand over his own hair and was startled to see chucks of dust flying from his head.

He _really_ needed a shower.

Jason didn't move.

He watched the sun set over the horizon, stunning white against the pink and gold back-drop indicating to the fast approaching night. Hazel sighed and brushed past him, looking over her shoulder once before descending into the belly of the ship as though Nico would be there.

Jason watched her from the corner of his eye as she left before collapsing.

He held his weight on trembling arms as his legs folded inwards, knocking his knees together. He bashed his head against the rail, made to prevent people from falling if, like Leo or Coach Hedge, they often felt the urge to bend right over the side and shout "SEE YA, SUCKERS!" or "DIE!" at passing birds. It depended on the moment.

His whole body was in some kind of shutdown mode, maybe shock that had taken so long to set in, maybe guilt that was pressing down on him with the strength of a thousand giants.

More than anything, Jason wished that he had never found out Nico's secret, even though it made him a coward to think it.

Nico's secret.

Unbidden, the memories that Nico had unintentionally released flooded his mind and the raw emotions filled him so much that he thought he might cry from the sheer power of the hatred and loathing and fear.

How Nico could live with it was beyond Jason, then again, Nico had survived Tartarus.

_That shouldn't mean he has to go through this_, Jason clenched his fists, feeling Nico's anger ebb away to be replaced by Jason's own. _No one should_.

It had all started when Nico and Jason had volunteered to collect Diocletian's sceptre.

They had followed Favonius, god of the West wind, who had then taken them to visit Cupid in Salona, where he had the sceptre. And from then on, it had all gone downhill.

Jason could see Nico's face now, scared but defiance in his eyes, as if offering a constant challenge. The columns fell around them, trapping them like animals as Cupid laughed and told Jason stories about love and spouted weird greeting card messages. Nico's scream, guttural and pained echoed through Jason's thoughts…

"Jason?" Jason spun around and almost head-butted Percy.

"Um… hi," said Jason, uncomfortably scratching the back of his head and shifting his weight from one foot to the other.

"Not to pry or anything," Percy eyed Jason warily. "But were you just braining yourself with the rails?"

"Uh," Jason shrugged weakly before changing the subject to one of safer ground. "How's everything?"

This time Percy shrugged, but his eyes darkened. "Annabeth's fine. Piper and Hazel have claimed her for the night."

"Is that a problem?" asked Jason worriedly. Percy and Annabeth had just been through hell together and if they needed each other now, Jason could understand. Percy shook his head, breaking loose a smile.

"Naw. I think Annabeth's looking forward to it. Girl time, you know." Percy pulled the orange towel, complete with the Camp Half-Blood insignia printed across, closer to him. "It's just, Tartarus."

"Hey, man," said Jason. "If you need to talk about it…"

"Please no," Percy shook his head. "Not ever. I have no idea how Nico got through it alone, if I hadn't had Annabeth…"

Jason cleared his throat uncomfortably and leaned against a barrel of something labelled HIGHLY EXPLOSIVE in Leo's scrawling hand. Percy sat on the step and stared out of a low porthole.

He bit his lip and then turned to Jason. "Hey, you wouldn't know why Nico was so keen to get away, would you?"

He must have seen the horror in Jason's eyes because he laughed. "Don't worry; it's just that Piper said you two had been acting differently so I thought that you might… It was stupid."

"Yeah," Jason forced himself to laugh. It died in his throat. Percy didn't seem to have noticed, instead lying back. Jason sat down next to him.

"Nico used to be such a sweet kid, annoying, but a good guy," said Percy, almost to himself. Jason wished he was anywhere but here. "And then he completely changed; he was all dark and mysterious and deadly. And now it's like I know him even less than I did when we first met. The more I find out about him, the less sense he makes."

"You don't have to tell me twice," said Jason. Percy gave a wry smirk before sighing and addressing Jason again.

"How have you been?" he asked.

"Great," said Jason.

Percy frowned at him disbelievingly. "Okay," said Jason, caving under almost no pressure at all. "Not so great, but definitely alright. No less than an okay."

It looked like Percy wanted to laugh, but wasn't sure quite whether it would be inappropriate or not.

Jason snorted and then they were both laughing so hard it hurt.

"Um…" Piper's voice came hesitantly from the door behind them. "Are you guys okay, you missed dinner."

Percy looked astonished. "We did?"

Jason looked up and saw that it was night; the stars were shimmering through a dark blue canopy and black clouds like LEDs. "Oops?" he offered as Piper folded her arms, stopping her T-shirt from flapping in the cool breeze.

"Idiot," she said, but with a smile that let Jason know she wasn't actually mad at him.

"I'm your idiot," he said and Piper didn't argue.

Jason made his way through the ship, easily navigating his way below deck towards his room, the door swung open without even a creek, only the sweeping whoosh of the wood slamming through air to make any noise.

Yawning, Jason kicked off his shoes, falling into his bed fully clothed.

_I'll get up and change in a second_, thought Jason. And then sleep washed over him and as always, nightmares plagued his dreams.

_"I'm growing stronger," a voice whispered, misty as the fog that surrounded Jason. _

_"Mother," a huge shadowed creature stepped out of the darkness. "I've brought the demigods."_

_Jason heard screaming and he strained his ears, trying to make out voices._

_Two bodies, struggling and contorted were thrust to the ground, Jason squinted, he couldn't make them out. He thought he saw a glimpse of brown hair, but that was virtually no help as most people had dark hair and even his and Annabeth's went that colour after so many days of monster attacks and no showers._

_Jason frowned and took a step towards them. If he found out who it was, maybe they would be able to prevent it! Five protecting two and making sure no one got separated. _

_His plan went wrong pretty much as soon as it started. First of all, Jason's foot failed to connect with rock and he fell to the ground with a bone-jarring thud. _

_"Hello, Jason," Gaia's voice swirled around him, presenting problem number two._

_"I suppose you're here to try and spy on me," continued Gaia, Jason stared around wildly, but she was nowhere to be seen. "Well, let's give you something to see."_

_The vision shifted and Jason found himself in a field. Not so bad. There were some flowers and picture perfect clouds strung in a clear blue sky. And a huge army of monsters strolling up the hill towards the demigods of Camp Half-Blood and Camp Jupiter... Jason started. _

_Reyna stood at the head of the demigod fleets; her dark eyes were searching the sky for something._

_And then Jason was standing in the midst of a battlefield. All around him, he could hear screams and the clanging of sword on sword and something the more sickening sound of weapon on flesh. _

_A loud cry filled Jason's ears and he clutched his hands to his ears. Demigods sank to their knees, cradling their heads in their hands._

_Above their heads rose something slight and red, circling through the skies which had turned stormy._

Jason woke up breathing heavily. He turned to his side and slapped his bedside light, to check the time. 5:30 AM.

He closed his eyes, and counted sheep under his breath. After it became apparent that he would not be getting any more sleep, Jason sat up and stretched, deciding that he might as well get some extra training in whilst he was awake.

He stood and turned around to push his bed covers back and got the shock of his life.

Coach Hedge was standing, holding his club in one hand and a half eaten aluminium can in the other, beside Jason's bed and watching him thoughtfully.

"Morning, cupcake," said Coach Hedge around a mouthful of can. "I have bad news."


	2. Jason II

**Wow, I was definiately not expecting so many reviews and great feedback. So much thanks to: Melissa daighte of Hecate, DeathlyHallowsschoolgirl, Scarpool, madmc12, SheWhoDreamsInsteadOfSleeps, squirrelkit and leafkit, CreCra, Guest, FreakingOutAlways, Hailey, Guest(2), KTDLover, HotPinkLady, Guest(3), doihafta, Percy Jackson2, PERCABETHLOVE, Piplup and Guest(4) for reviewing. **

**Guest: I wouldn't say I'm traumatized as much, but definatly shocked. I just want to give him a hug.**

**Hailey: Thank you. I really doubt I'm as good as Rick, but I'm flattered you think so :). Yuo'll find out in just a second.**

**Guest(2): Thank you! :)**

**PERCABETHLOVE: No, I didn't forget, it's explained here. Sorry if I confused you.**

**Piplup: Thank you, I tried to add some more desciption between text (not sure how well did). Haha, sorry about that.**

**Guest(3): Thank you! **

**Percy Jackson2: Thank you for your thoughts, you've given me an idea!**

**doihafta: Um... this is a fanfiction for The Blood of Olympus. If you don't know what the first is, run. If you don't know what the second is then start reading Percy Jackson. If you liked it: Thank you! :)**

**Guest(4): Here's more!**

**HotPinkLady: Thank you so much for your review. I'm glad you enjoyed it, yeah, I think Rick'll pull somthing like that too (poor guys) and I'm glad you think it's alright. I thought that as much as Percy and Annabeth might need each other, the others had a tough time without them and Piper and Annabeth seemed really close. Your wish is my command (at some point). Will do!**

* * *

**The Blood of Olympus**

**II**

**JASON**

After Jason got over his initial heart attack, he remained confused. Coach Hedge had gone with Nico and Reyna to present the Athena Parthenos to the Greek and Romans as a peace offering.

"What?" spluttered Jason.

"Keep that rainbow straight, miss," shouted Coach Hedge. "I'm vertically challenged enough as it is!"

Jason heard Reyna mumbling under her breath as the image of Coach Hedge changed and smoothed over as though a film had been drawn back.

"What?" asked Jason again, feeling as though he was still dreaming.

"Stop mumbling," snapped Coach Hedge. "I said, I have bad news."

"Okay," said Jason.

"No, not 'okay' cupcake! Bad news, bad. Not okay!" shouted Coach Hedge.

Jason gritted his teeth, it was like prying clams open, struggling with the tough outer shell under it finally fell apart to find only a small pearl of wisdom hidden inside.

If Jason had been any more philosophical he would have carried on, mentally debating that sometimes what looks small turns out to be huge in the long run: but Jason was tired so he just blinked and said: "What kind of bad news?"

"The kind of bad news that'll get you killed if you don't pay attention to me," said Coach Hedge threateningly.

Reyna's voice sounded from behind the IM, clearer than before. "And this is why I should have… IMed…" her voice tailed a bit at the unfamiliar word. It sounded sour in her throat. "Why I should have IMed them," she continued and Jason could just hear her eye roll.

It was a gift that Reyna possessed. To be able to imitate her actions with only her voice. Other expressions she could do were glaring, disappointment and annoyed as Pluto.

"You're just melodramatic, satyr," said Reyna.

Coach Hedge glared over the mist at where Reyna was stood. He shook his stick once before turning back to Jason.

"Anyway, there are a flock of striges heading your way at top speed," said Coach Hedge. "If that son of Hades really did take us a hundred miles – which I'm still not certain about – then they should be there by midday. By Reyna's calculations anyway."

"They'll be there by midday," came Reyna's voice again. "Watch out, they weren't alone either. There were-"

"Ahem," Coach Hedge cut across her. "I was talking. We heard shouts heading the same way. Coincidence? I think not."

"Hold on," Jason said, confused. "You IMed me at 5:30 in the morning to warn me about an attack at midday?"

"Of course not," said Coach Hedge. "You'll be taken out of the sky way before then if you don't hurry and get to your port before I count to ten. And I wanted to say hello. Make sure you're all doing okay without me."

Coach Hedge's voice was gruff sounding, but Jason could see a hint of worry behind his eyes. Jason was touched that the satyr actually cared about them, no matter how much he pretended otherwise, but still slightly concerned that this would become a regular occurrence.

He decided that if the Coach wanted to check up on them at 5:30AM daily, they would have to take shifts.

"We're all fine," said Jason. "A little beat up still, but when aren't we?"

Coach Hedge looked for a moment as though he would like to answer that question, but obviously thought better of it. He sighed and touched his aluminium can to his horns.

Good luck, kid," he said before cutting the connection.

Jason dressed hurriedly, throwing on jeans and a shirt that read _Meine_ _Schlaft_. Jason didn't know why it was in German or what it read, but it was cleaner than most other items of clothing with only a slight smear of something on the collar.

_Seriously_, Jason thought as he looked at his jeans properly. They were covered in black stuff that Jason presumed was either coal, slime or just general gunk. _I swear we had a laundry monitor. _That plan had fallen through pretty much straightaway with everyone just grabbing new clothes from gift shops.

Jason made his way to the breakfast hall and was only partially surprised when he found Piper there.

"Hey," he said.

Piper smiled at him, her hair in a disarrayed corona around her head. "Hi. Nightmares?"

Sometimes Jason thought that Piper could read his mind. "Kind of," he said, sliding into the seat opposite her. "That's why I woke up. Coach Hedge IMed me."

Piper frowned, rubbing sleep from her eyes. "Why?"

"He was warning us; apparently some striges are going to join the party of monsters trying to kill us around lunchtime."

"Lovely," wrinkling her nose, Piper took a sip from her goblet before spitting it out into the cup again. "Stupid thing," muttered Piper. "I keep having to specify the temperature I want my hot chocolate to be or it just gives me piping hot and freezing cold. I swear kettles are more complainant than these things."

Jason took Piper's hand. Her cheeks flushed pink, something Jason knew she hated, but that he loved.

"So," she said, adverting her eyes from their entwined hands to Jason's face and changing the subject. "What are these striges?"

Jason bit his lip, trying to think of the best way to describe them. "Um… They're flesh-eating, ill-omen-bringing owls," he said finally. "I think we can take them."

Piper laughed. "Oh I don't know: I've always been scared of oversized chickens."

Then the rest of Coach Hedge's warning flashed through his mind.

"He said something about there being others heading in the same direction. After us."

Piper was silent for a moment, stroking his knuckles with her thumb as the sun rose, letting light leak through circular windows and into golden pools, spilling onto the wooden flooring and turning it from brown to a burnt-amber color that made Jason think of fire, flickering out and dying as the wood charred into ash.

Or as Leo stopped messing around.

"We should tell the others," she said finally. "As much as I hate to wake them all up…"

"This affects us all," agreed Jason.

Piper sighed. "I just wish we could all have just one moment of peace, you know?"

"I know," said Jason. "I'll go to the cabins; you find Leo."

It didn't take long for Jason to wake Frank who jerked out of his slumber with a punch reflex at the ceiling before getting out of bed. His pyjamas, always a little short, now hung at his shins and below his elbows.

"Jason?" he asked blearily.

"Meeting in the food hall," said Jason. "Like, now."

"Give me five minutes," said Frank, grabbing a bundle of clothes from the end of his bed and backing into his bathroom. As Jason left the room, he heard the blasting of water from the shower, he wished he had stopped for a shower, he felt stiff all over and dirty, like a coat of blood had crusted onto his body.

Jason knocked on Hazel's door and shouted for her to get dressed, he didn't feel like invading her privacy, but at Annabeth's door he paused.

Feeling a little stalkerish, Jason pressed his ear to the wood he could make out faint snuffles of breathing and the rustling of sheets.

"Annabeth," he called.

There was no reply so Jason pushed the door open slowly and peered in.

Annabeth was alone. Was that a good or bad thing? Jason didn't know. She rolled to one side of the bed and then struck out, kicking with her legs desperately against the covers which had twisted around her legs.

She gave a scream, weak and muffled. Jason was across the room shaking her awake before he even had time to blink.

Her gray eyes opened, scared and confused, her face tear streaked. "Jason?" she asked; her voice shaky. "What? Where's Percy?"

She sat up straight, pushing herself from the bed and bustled past Jason and piling her hair into a mess of blonde on top of her head.

"Annabeth," began Jason uncomfortably. "I'm here to help. If you ever need to talk to anyone… I mean, anyone _else_… I'm here."

Annabeth froze; her back to Jason. "Thank you for waking me," she said stiffly.

Jason waited for her to say something else. She didn't, but turned to look at him expectantly, frowning.

"Oh… um… we're having a meeting in the food hall," said Jason uncomfortably.

"Okay," said Annabeth. "Percy and I'll see you there in a few." Then she left the room, leaving the door open. Inviting Jason to leave.

Jason sighed, squaring his shoulders and keeping his head down as he walked past Percy's room.

He had always had a niggling feeling in the back of his mind that whispered that Annabeth didn't really like him. Jason had tried to ignore it, but recently Jason had started to notice the way he was getting sideways glances from everyone.

He partially blamed Nico for that, making him keep secrets. Jason didn't like keeping things to himself, preferring to discuss and share with other people, but he found that more and more lately it was becoming impossible.

Could Jason trust everyone? With his life, sure. But with his skeletons in the cupboard? Jason wasn't so sure.

* * *

**Remember: Reviews =Love =Faster, Better Updates! :)**


	3. Hazel III

**Hey, sorry for the long wait. My mum's telling me to go to bed now, so no time to check all the names of everyone who reviewed. Rest assured, you guys are my heros and I love each and every one of you. Sorry if that means I can't reply to your review, if you want me to, just tell me in your review now! **

**Anyway, just going to shameless advertise myself. Please check out some of my other stories. I have written some PJO stories and oneshots ranging from Luke and Thalia on the run to Alabaster to Leo's big thoughts to my ideas for endgame. It would mean a lot to me if you check them out. :)**

**Also, this was origially going to be Annabeth's chapter, but I decided at the last minute I wanted Hazel instead. Would you guys be interested in having, say, a fic where scenes that didn't make the final cut (but definately happened) could be? It would probably contain more flufy stuff and funny moments that aren't really vital to the plot but I would have like to have fitted in. **

**One final thing: 38 reviews for 2 chapters? Insane and amazing. *smiles so big her face splits in half***

* * *

**The Blood of Olympus**

**III**

**Hazel**

_There was blood in her sink. Hazel stared into the basin, horrified, as the rivulets drained away…_

_"And their blood shall become her blood," a voice droned… a familiar voice…_

Jerking awake to the abrupt sound of knocking was nothing unusual for Hazel. Jason's voice shouted that they were having a meeting and that she had to be there.

She sighed, pushing herself from her bed, trying to blink her dream away. It didn't work; it stayed in the forefront of her mind, playing over and over like a video on repeat.

Hazel brushed her hair into a ponytail, resolving to get the thousands of knots out of her tangled hair in the evening. She found it amazing that such trivial things could have once been important to her, now she only cared of her skin if it was getting burnt off and her hair if it caught on something. Not that Hazel had ever had an exact routine when it came to care and cosmetics, but she used to at least pretend she had an interest in it.

Now all pretences had dropped.

She just didn't care.

Changing into some clothes that Hazel vaguely recognized as Piper's, Hazel grabbed her spatha and rushed into the corridor, straight into Leo.

They hit the floor with a slam.

"Oh, hi," Leo's voice sounded squashed. "Hazel, I didn't see you there."

Hazel jumped back, feeling a blush creep over her face.

"Sorry," she said. She looked at Leo properly, taking in the purple bruises under his eyes and the heavy bags. "You look lousy," she offered.

"Thanks," said Leo sarcastically. "You made me feel all warm and gooey on the inside."

"I'm heading to the food hall," said Hazel. "You?"

"Yeah," Leo sighed and rubbed his hands over his face. "Yeah, I guess so."

They fell into stride with each other as they headed forwards, climbing over weapons and debris and "Oh, look," said Hazel, pointing. "It's a surfboard."

Leo smirked. "For Percy."

"Fool proof," agreed Hazel.

"From Piper and I as our joint present," said Leo. "Jason dropped out. I think he decided he liked being dry."

"Piper went along with it?" asked Hazel, slightly surprised. She hopped over some planks of wood that were strewn just before the steps. "And I thought she was the good influence on you."

"That's what she'll have you believe," said Leo tapping the side of his nose.

He shoved the door open with his back so that he could aim two finger guns and a wink at Hazel. She shook her head as she walked past him into the room and sat beside Frank, leaning against him.

"I had to put Festus on autopilot," said Leo, slipping into the seat beside Percy.

Percy glared at the son of Hephaestus and drew his blue dressing gown closer to him. Hazel bit back a grin; she wondered what Leo had done now. "Why are we here anyway?" asked Frank looking to Jason.

Jason ran his hand through his hair, frowning and stood, looking uncomfortable. "I had a dream last night."

"Is that what this is about?" Annabeth's voice sounded worried but slightly sceptical although Hazel was interested. Demigod dreams were very different from the usual variety because they often held clues to the future, almost prophetic in fact. That didn't stop them being nightmares.

Jason shook his head. "No." He didn't seem sure of his answer.

Piper took Jason's side. "He got an IM from Coach Hedge."

Hazel felt Frank take a deep breath. "Is he okay?" he demanded.

"He's fine. So is Reyna, I could hear her talking," Jason said, nodding to Frank in what would have once been a solidification of his superior rank. Not anymore. Now Frank outranked all of them.

Hazel tried not to notice the way that Jason hadn't mentioned Nico.

"He just had a couple of warnings. Some striges should be dropping in at about lunchtime and some more monsters after that. They don't know what type though, just that their voices are heading the same way."

"Hold on," Percy held up one finger, frowning. "Some ostriches are going to try and kill us?"

Annabeth sighed and exchanged Piper's amused glance with her own. Before Hazel had the chance to feel left out, however, Jason answered Percy.

"_Striges_. Flesh eating birds," he shook his head as comprehension dawned in Percy's eyes.

"Oh. Then I can work from experience," he looked at Annabeth with a smirk.

Hazel felt entertained exasperation wash over her. How one person could be so similarly stupid and clever at the same time was still a mystery to her.

She and Frank exchanged smiles.

"Is that all?" asked Annabeth.

Jason nodded.

"We just thought you should all know," said Piper, taking Jason's hand. "Right?"

Annabeth smiled. "Right. Now I guess we should all train a bit and get back to our duties. Who's on lookout?"

There was a painful silence as Annabeth looked around, confused.

"Nico," croaked Hazel pathetically.

"Oh." Comprehension fell over Annabeth just as everyone turned to Hazel. She blinked back tears feeling like an idiot.

Why was she crying? Sometimes she went for months without seeing or even hearing from Nico and now she was cracking like glass under pressure even thinking about him. She supposed that Nico's aptitude for getting himself into trouble (read: life or death situations) had finally caught up to her. _Stop behaving like a baby;_ she gave herself a mental shake. _You can worry about him later. Alone._

"I'll take first watch," said Hazel.

Annabeth shot her a grateful look that Hazel returned with a wavering smile.

"Now, who has been doing laundry?" asked Annabeth, hands on hips.

Hazel frowned. There was laundry duty? She glanced around the table and saw that, as per usual, everyone was wearing something slightly stained or torn (or ripped to shreds).

Annabeth looked around her at a sea of vacant faces and sighed. "You know, on that timetable." She pointed at the left wall and, sure enough, a framed timetable sketched onto yellowing paper.

"I swear, that was not there before," said Leo, peering over Piper's head. He eyed Annabeth suspiciously. "Are you tricking us? Did you just put that up?"

Throwing her hands in the air, Annabeth muttered, "Why do I bother?" Hazel could only assume she was asking the gods.

"No, Leo, I did not just put that up. It has been there since we took off. Don't tell me that none of you noticed." Annabeth looked around, her gaze finally settling desperately on Percy who shrugged.

"_None_ of you noticed it?" asked Annabeth again, slightly hysterically. "In, like, two months?"

"We've been busy," said Leo. "You know, not dying. And if we're deciding now; I vote Frank."

"Hey," said Frank.

Annabeth nodded, shooting a steely glare at both Leo and Frank that made them both quieten down.

"I should head back to the wheel," said Leo. "So I guess that means it's time for mass exodus." He grinned and mock saluted as he left the room.

Hazel trudged to the prow of the ship and fixed her hands to the wood, leaning out so that if the ship gave a lurch she would have ample aim off the ship.

She was alone on the deck.

Frank was downstairs, sorting colors from whites as far as Hazel knew; Piper and Jason were sparring and Percy and Annabeth were going to check the maps – or, Annabeth would check the maps and Percy would pretend to help – whilst Leo stayed at his usual steering position.

The ground flashed blow the Argo II and Hazel could just make out green and blue and red through the wisps of clouds, the faint traces of normal life almost touchable.

Hazel lent slightly forwards and was brought abruptly to her senses by Festus snorting a warning, letting a small stream of flames flicker into the air. She leant back. "Thanks," she called to Festus who gave a small grunt in return. Hazel didn't know whether it was Leo communicating through Festus or the magical dragon head simply talking itself but she supposed that either way, being polite couldn't hurt.

The boat rocked and Hazel immediately curled forwards, wrapping her arms around her torso as if to keep herself together. The sudden jerk of motion sickness swept over her and she gritted her teeth, hating that her stomach was still churning.

Proof. Proof that she was weaker than everybody else.

Biting her lip, Hazel shut her eyes and waited for everything to settle back; Leo levelled the course and before long Hazel could see straight. She pressed her forehead against the smooth bark of the rail, breathing heavily.

Hazel looked up and felt something clench inside of her like an icy fist had punched her in the stomach.

She twisted the rope in her hands, it felt rough and she could feel the skin peeling away from under its fibres. Pulling herself upwards, Hazel clung onto the rigging like a kola onto a eucalyptus tree feeling that irrational fear of slipping only a few inches from the deck.

Hazel shoved it away, holding on and seeing her knuckles turn white with effort.

Slowly, she began to climb, shaking with something akin to fear. The ropes blurred before her eyes, and bright blue skies appeared in skewed squares.

It was exhausting, Hazel wasn't used to relying so completely on upper body strength and her breaths were coming in short bursts.

Finally she reached the mast where huge billowing sails swept like huge continents in the bluest sea imaginable in twenty feet sized cloth. Hazel curled up just beneath them in the rigging, it dug into her shoulders, not uncomfortably though and it sunk beneath her weight as though used to the pressure of a body.

Nico.

She could feel a scream building inside of her. Why was she so scared? _Why_?

This was where he had sat, staring into the distance and thinking about… what?

Hazel could see it. His hair tousled in the breezes, his face pinched with cold and worry and his whole body smothered in black fabrics that made him look even paler than usual.

Body racking with unexplainable sobs, Hazel buried her face in her hands. She had hoped that coming up here would sooth her mind, bring her closer to Nico. Instead she just felt as though they had grown further apart. She was more out of her depth than ever.

Her brother had set on this quest. He had given her a reason to fight and now he had gone off again without a proper goodbye and with the kind of look in his eyes that made Hazel want to make him swear on the river Styx not to do anything stupid.

But he would. He would do something stupid. Hazel knew it. Her fingers, still sore from climbing and now complete with red welts, smarted even more with the added sting of the salt.

A conch sounded. Hazel's eyes flew open; she wiped her nose on her sleeve staring into the sky, horrified.

Her hand went for her sword. Nothing. Hazel looked down and saw it glittering enticingly from the bottom, shimmering golden.

She groaned as she turned to the mast where the rigging was attached to the wooden poles.

It was official. She was the worst lookout ever.

Her last hysterical thought before unhooking the supports was: _Leo's going to kill me_.


	4. Leo IV

**A.N. LAST UPDATE UNTIL DECEMBER PEOPLE. I'm doing NaNoWriMo and therefore putting most stories on Hiatus. Might update 'Fleeting Earth Hours' so if you like my writing, please check on that story. Thanks to: ThePotatoKing, Guest, Guest 2, CreCra, Lulu, Riley, KekuleSalavador, KILLINGhope14, pipermclean516, KTDLover, FanFictionLover13, Tyler, Mohamed and Hshh for reviewing. You guys mdeme smile so I'll give you cookies (::) (::)**

**Sorry about the fail of a chapter that this is. Really short...but then again, I wrote it in half an hour.**

* * *

**The Blood of Olympus**

**IV**

**LEO**

Nothing screamed trouble like huge, feathery birds that seemed to breathe fire. Leo didn't know whether or not these were the striges Jason had warned them about, but he found himself rather doubting that Jason had actually ever seen one of these gigantic birds before. Jason would have probably sounded more worried.

Part of Leo was worried about Hazel who had been posted on guard duty. If she hadn't seen these lumbering beasties, then what chance did that give her wellbeing? Seriously hoping that she was just unconscious – Leo didn't particularly want Frank to kill him – Leo turned to check out the area where Hazel should have been.

Her sword, golden and almost hidden behind some ropes, glinted at him accusingly. Leo swore.

And then his ship collapsed.

Well, the rigging on one side anyway, and holding on tightly, screaming so loudly that Leo felt his eardrums popping, was Hazel. She grabbed her sword, pressing her back to the inside ledge of the Argo II.

She spotted Leo watching her and waved. He waved back; half glad she was okay, half planning her murder for destroying his beautiful baby.

Later on, Leo supposed that it was his own fault for not paying attention or noticing that Hazel was screaming for him to turn back to the wheel.

When Leo did, the monster beat him to it.

"Oh man," breathed Leo. He took a step back and another; two beady black eyes followed his movements. Leo very slowly reached one hand towards his tool belt. Then he leapt backwards into the shelves, causing everything he had so painstakingly organised so that nothing explosive was next to anything that might set it off and all the paper work was piled in alphabetical order (Annabeth's work).

The strige had jerked its chest forward, spreading its wings wide so that they crushed against the wooden pillars on either side of it. It gave a warning shriek, as if to tell Leo '_beware, my territory now'_.

"You wish my feathered friend," said Leo, gripping his hammer tightly between his fingers. "But no one crashes my boat and gets away with it."

Then he lunged towards the strige, waving his hammer like a mad man and screaming a really fearsome battle cry like: "Aaagghhhh!"

Yeah, Leo was a real old fashioned hero.

Once he had reduced his bird to a pile of feathery dust, Leo put Festus on autopilot before jumping down onto the deck and running towards where Hazel was, spinning around and round, kicking some serious monster butt. Leo was impressed but as there was still a whole back-up flock of the monsters heading towards them he decided to lend a hand.

He jumped into the fight going in for back to back with Hazel straight away as the circled. "You took your time," muttered Hazel, stabbing a strige in the wing.

"Ungrateful," said Leo reprovingly, "and for your information I had my own battle up there."

"I could see that – watch out- " Leo automatically ducked and felt the air sliced in two above his head as a huge claw swiped over him, possibly searing a few hairs from Leo's scalp but definitely missing the original target of Leo's head.

"I could see that," continued Hazel, "but in the time it took you to beat one, I had taken about three."

"Yeah, these ones are all feather-brains," defended Leo, pointing with his hammer when, as if to prove his point, two striges head banged and then fell from the railing of the Argo, limp and splayed out as they disappeared around the side of the boat. Leo absently wondered what the mortals would think the two gigantic birds falling from the sky would be. _"Oh look, there go two pigeons."_ "My one was _smart_."

Suddenly a huge wall of flames sprung up around them, catching on the sails and what was left of the mast. The back-up squad had arrived.

"_Hey_!" a muffled banging sound drew Leo's attention to the door leading below deck. A strige was parked conspicuously in front of it and noises that sounded like voices. Leo smirked: _Yeah bird-breath, we have our own standby crew. _Edging towards the door, Leo plunged straight in the flames, feeling them tickle over his skin with the barest sensation of warmth.

There was a squawk of surprise as Leo emerged on the other side of the fire, not only not burnt to ashes but completely unscathed. Leo summoned two fireballs; one clenched around each fist and stood for a moment soaking up the feeling of power as he stood over the cowering strige guarding the door before throwing both balls at it.

The strige burst into a flaming feathered panic bomb as it half-flew, half ran towards its flock, screaming a high pitched shriek. Its herd scrambled back in alarm and as the alit bird caught up with them, Leo swung back the door to the lower decks.

Immediately the rest of the seven spilled onto the deck, revealing that they had been pressed against the door together. Within seconds Percy had gathered the situation and, with Jason, sprang into battle. Frank took a little longer to get to his feet, before barrelling toward Hazel who was mercilessly stabbing at more striges.

Annabeth and Piper had drawn their weapons and joined Leo, defending the lower barracks and prow of the boat from overgrown birds, desperate to escape.

Leo grunted as he brained another strige. He looked up to see Percy doing his cool 'son of Poseidon' thing and spraying the boat with water, as Jason swept like a blond superman in the almost completely destroyed rigging, tying up loose ropes and hauling the sails up.

Spotting Leo, he zoomed down. "I've done my best," he said. "But the damage is pretty bad. Nothing you won't be able to fix though." Leo nodded, swallowing a lump in his throat.

He watched his ship, flames being dowsed in water, but still wrecked and battered from so many trials. Leo hoped that he and his friends would come out of this war better than the Argo II.


End file.
